Huntsgirl's Slay Ride
by Fudogg
Summary: On Christmas Eve, Rose attempts to run away from the Huntsclan. Unfortunately, her escape doesn't go the way she planned. Rated for language.
1. Chapter 1

Huntsgirl's Slay Ride

**Disclaimer: I do not own American Dragon: Jake Long. Disney does.**

Chapter One: Miss Scrooge

The bell rang out through Millard Fillmore Middle School at the end of the day. All students knew what that meant: it was time for the winter holidays to begin. No school for two weeks. Who wouldn't be excited?

Well, there was one person…

Rose, otherwise known as Huntsgirl of the Huntsclan, was not happy during this time of year. She was never happy during any holiday: Halloween, New Year, Easter or Independence Day. Rose wasn't even happy on her birthday. Why? Because the people who raised her didn't care about the holidays; all they cared about was slaying magical creatures. Rose didn't. And she didn't care because the boy she loved was in fact a magical creature. All she wanted was to have a happy holiday season this year.

But she knew that she never would have a good holiday season, and as she exited her school, the thought almost brought tears to her eyes. She would never have a good holiday as long as she was a prisoner of the Huntsclan. Okay, she wasn't a prisoner, she was actually the Huntsclan leader's apprentice, and had she not changed her mind about dragons, she would be looking forward to succeeding him when he passed away. But she had changed her mind about magical creatures and now she felt like a prisoner of the clan. And now this year would be worse, for just a few months ago, she had had a dream in which she discovered that the Huntsclan had kidnapped her from her parents and a twin. Rose sniffled. She had to get out of the Huntsclan.

Rose suddenly grunted as she felt someone bumped into her, making her drop her books and fall to her knees. "Oh, I'm so…" the person started, but Rose didn't want to hear it.

Turning her head, she shouted at the poor soul in her Huntsgirl voice: "Hey, asshole! Why don't you watch where you're—Jake?!" Rose suddenly stopped when she noticed that the victim of her verbal assault was her boyfriend, Jake Long, also known as the American Dragon.

"Oh, Jake!" Rose paled. "Jake, I'm so sorry…" she tried to apologize, but she stopped when she saw that Jake was smiling.

"It's okay, Miss Scrooge." Jake chuckled. "Here, let me get your books for you."

Rose just stared in amazement as Jake picked up all of her books for her and placed them back in her arms. Jake was so nice…and she had been so rude. And then the cherry on top of the niceness sundae: "I'll walk you home if you want me to…" Jake offered.

Rose was so surprised with Jake's kindness that she could only nod. Although…Rose would hardly call the Huntslair a "home"; it was merely a place where she lived with people who did not love her and would not hesitate to murder her if they found out about her relationship with Jake. Murder her…or worse…

&*%

The two walked together in silence for a couple moments before Rose tried to break the silence. "Jake…" she said. "I'm really sorry for being so rude. It's just…it's just this time of year. I've never celebrated Christmas or anything else. I've never decorated a Christmas tree, I've never sang carols, I've never given or received a present…"

"Dang…" Jake responded. "Does the Huntsclan…?"

"The Huntsclan doesn't celebrate Christmas because they believe that it gets in the way of our life's mission." Rose explained. "And it's not just Christmas. I've never watched fireworks on the fourth of July, never been on an Easter egg hunt, never gone trick-or-treating and never gotten a birthday cake."

"Aw man, Rose." Jake moaned. "No wonder you're in a bad mood around holidays! Is there anything I can do?"

"It's okay, Jake." Rose told him. "I've learned to never show my real feelings about not celebrating any holidays."

"What do you mean, Rose?"

"It was my first Christmas with the Huntsman…" Rose started to explain.

&*%

_Rose, aged seven, had just graduated from the Academy and was now in her new room in the Huntsclan penthouse. It was much nicer than her quarters at the Academy, and it was even more exciting because she had learned about something called "Christmas". Apparently, Christmas was a time of celebration where people put up and decorated trees, bought gifts for those that they loved among many other things that sounded exciting to the young girl. She had also done some research and found out about Santa Claus and that today was Christmas Eve, the day before Christmas._

_Suddenly, the door to her room opened and the Huntsman stepped inside. Rose immediately jumped off her bed and stood up straight._

"_Huntsgirl…" the Huntsman spoke. "Get dressed. Tonight, we are going out for your very first hunt. I'll be back in five minutes…"_

_The Huntsman started to walk out of the room, but little Rose called him back. "But what about Christmas?"_

"_What?" The Huntsman turned around, raising an eye at her. "What did you just say?"_

"_Christmas…" Little Rose repeated. "It's Christmas Eve. Shouldn't we stay here and…celebrate?"_

"_No!" The Huntsman shouted, but it didn't scare the young apprentice. "To me, Christmas is no different than any other day of the year. And it will be the same way for you…"_

"_But I want to celebrate Christmas…" little Rose said._

"_Watch your mouth, Huntsgirl…"_

"_Can't we just try i…?" Rose started, but she was cut off as the back of the Huntsman's hand smacked into the side of her face, making her jerk her head to the side._

"_Let that be a lesson to you, Huntsgirl!" the Huntsman growled. "You NEVER talk back to me. You get off easily this time because this is your first night under my command, but if you ever talk back to me again, you will regret it. You have five minutes to get dressed."_

_The Huntsman then turned and left the room, slamming the door behind him as the seven year old Rose just stood there, tears forming in her eyes._

&*%

"He hit you?" Jake asked in horror as Rose finished her story.

"News flash, Jake…" Rose answered. "He's hit me many times. Jake, I think its best that we split ways here. I don't think you should risk being seen even in human form by the Huntsman. That and I can take it from here."

Rose then turned and started to walk away, but Jake called to her: "Rose, what are you going to do?"

Rose turned to face him. "Well, when I get back to the Huntslair, I think I'm going to go take a shower and then cry myself to sleep."

"Rose, don't be like that…"

"Don't be like what, Jake?" Rose demanded, a little bit of anger flashing through her eyes. "I want my family, Jake! I want out of the Huntsclan and I want to find my family! Is that so much to ask for?! I guess it is! I guess I'll never get my Christmas wish…"

"Rose…" Jake tried to call her, but it was no use. Rose had turned and was now walking away…

END CHAPTER

**A/N: So, I decided to do a Christmas story. Yeah, this chapter is quite angsty, but can you really blame poor Rose? Hopefully from here on it will be more upbeat, because there should be no such thing as a depressing Jake Long Christmas fic :P . I'll try to update as much as possible, but I am quite certain that this will go on passed the holidays. **

**So, what did you think? Please review.**


	2. Chapter 2

Huntsgirl's Slay Ride

**Disclaimer: I don't own American Dragon: Jake Long or anything related to the show.**

Chapter Two: Dream Date and an Idea

Rose sighed sadly as she entered the Huntslair. She could feel the cold, damp air of the abandoned subway station and she could see one train speeding by. Rose sighed as she turned and started to walk up the stairs that led her to her quarters.

Rose stopped at the door to her room before stepping in and closing the door behind her. Dropping her backpack on the ground, Rose turned and locked her door, assuring her that no one would just barge in, although it didn't assure her a peaceful night to herself.

Rose then walked over to her bed and sat down before lying down on her side as she closed her eyes and silently began to allow her tears to fall. She hated living here. She hated the entire Huntsclan; she especially hated the Huntsman.

Rose just lied there, silently releasing all of her negative emotions; she cried until she felt like she could cry no more. With one final sniffle, Rose sat up just in time to hear a pounding at her door. "HUNTSGIRL!" the Huntsman's voice boomed from the other side of the door. "I have an assignment for you! Get out here!"

Rose sniffled one more time and wiped the tears away before she spoke: "Coming, master. I'll be out in a few minutes." Rose then got off of her bed and walked over to her closet and pulled it open before pulling her Huntsclan uniform under to label "Friday" off of its rack.

Rose got dressed as quickly as she could and then she grabbed her mask and slipped it over her head and then walked over to her nightstand. Opening the top drawer, Rose pulled out her dream charm and slipped it over her wrist. Rose then walked over to the door, unlocked it and opened it and saw the Huntsman with his arms crossed and tapping his foot impatiently. "Took you long enough, Huntsgirl…" he growled softly.

"I apologize, Huntsmaster…" Rose replied. "I…wasn't feeling well so I was resting. I'm feeling better now."

"Good…" The Huntsman said, although Rose knew that he couldn't care less. "You must watch over #88 and 89 tonight while they train. Make sure that they do not do anything stupid." And as the Huntsman turned and started to walk away, Rose could hear him say something along the lines of: "Worst decision I ever made, hiring those two…"

&*%

Rose had made her way down to the training arena where she could see 88 and 89 trying to attack a cardboard piece that was supposed to look like a leprechaun. As soon as Rose entered, both trainees turned and rushed up to her.

"Alright you two…" Rose told them as she pulled off her mask and sat down. "You are going to spend the next two hours training and Huntsmaster wants me to watch you."

"Whoa, check her out…" 89 said, not really paying attention to Rose's instructions; instead he pointed at Rose. "Hey 88, check her out! It looks like Huntsgirl's been crying!"

"What?!" Rose asked, shocked. "I have no idea what you're talking about!" Of course, this was a lie. Rose knew that she had been crying, but she would never let anyone in the Huntsclan know that she had.

"Oh yeah!" 88 chimed in. "I can totally see it! Her eyes are all red and poofy!"

"YOU IMBECILES GET TO TRAINING RIGHT NOW OR I SWEAR THAT I'LL MAKE YOU CRY!" Rose roared. As she had hoped, 88 and 89 both paled and their eyes widened as they both turned around and raced over to the training dummy.

Watching the two yahoos, Rose sighed and she buried her head in her hands, trying to cover her ears with her hands in order to block out their chatting. She had to get a moment's peace.

&*%

After two hours of trying to block out 88 and 89's talking, Rose nearly leaped for joy as she realized that the time was up. She could go up to her room and go into the Dream Realm. As the three hunters walked up the stairs to their respective quarters, Rose was drawn into listening to 88 and 89's discussion.

"Dude, we need to get a gift for the Huntsman!" 88 exclaimed. "I mean, last year, we failed to get that sasquatch."

"Yeah!" 89 agreed. "Maybe if he likes the gift, he'll…"

"Good luck with that…" Rose muttered. "The Huntsman doesn't believe in Christmas. You'll just be wasting your time."

"…I was going to say, before Huntsgirl so rudely cut me off, that the Huntsman might give us a promotion." 89 finished.

Rose let out a loud, hateful and bitter laugh at 89's stupid thought. "Get a clue, dorks…" she growled. "The Huntsman DOES NOT believe in Christmas. I've never celebrated it in my entire life, and when you've been here as long as I have, you'll wish that you could. So just…get it through your heads: if you get the Huntsman a present, he'll probably throw you to the kraken."

The two trainees then watched as Rose turned and grumbled as she stormed down the hall. As soon as Rose was gone, 89 turned to Rose. "Hey 88?" he asked.

"Yeah?"

"Do you think that's why she was crying?" 89 asked his friend. "Because it's Christmas and she's never celebrated it?"

"I don't know, 89." 88 answered truthfully. "I mean, should we really care?"

"I don't know, dude…" 89 answered. "I mean maybe we should. She is our superior, and she does seem upset about Christmas. Maybe we should help her out. I mean, shouldn't we have some kind of code to help our fellow hunter?"

"Dude…" 88 was speechless, but he managed to say something despite his shock. It wasn't much, but 88 hoped that it would help his fellow trainee. "You need to see the Hunts-nurse."

&*%

Rose sighed as she closed the door to her room behind her. She was exhausted; listening to 88 and 89 chat and bicker was more tiring than any extreme training course that the Huntsclan could offer. Stumbling over to her bed, Rose allowed herself to fall onto her mattress belly first. She was asleep before her head touched her pillow.

&*%

In a flash of bright light, Rose found herself in the Dream Realm. Making her way over to Jake's dream door, Rose grabbed the knob and pushed the door open, stepping into Jake's dream.

After looking around for awhile, Rose finally found Jake sitting alone at a table in "Paris". Rose smiled slightly as she walked over to the table and sat down at the chair next to Jake's. Jake smiled as he turned to face her.

"Yo, I've been waiting for you…" he said.

"You have?" Rose asked, touched. "Jake, I…"

"Wait!" Jake suddenly cut her off as two bowls of food and two drinks magically appeared on the table. "Okay, now you can talk…"

Rose smiled slightly as she picked up a fork and dug into the bowl with it. "Jake…" she started. "I just wanted to apologize for being a…well; you know…It's just, holidays have always been painful, and now that I know about my parents…"

"I understand, Rose…" Jake told her. "I understand that you're sad. I really want to help you with this. I want to help you find your parents when we're done with the skull problem."

"But how, Jake?" Rose asked. "How will we find them if we have no idea where they are? And…what about Christmas?"

"Oh, Rose…" Jake sighed. "I want to help you. I really do. So this is my idea: I'll ask my parents if I can invite you to our family traditions. We do everything: caroling, going to the mall to sit on Santa's lap, costume parties. We even make cookies for Santa and put brittle on the roof for his reindeer. I know it's not the same, but I really want to show you Christmas."

Rose wasn't listening to Jake's words; well, not anymore. She had stopped listening when he mentioned Santa. "Jake…" Rose suddenly asked. "Can I ask you something?"

"Sure…"

"People ask Santa for things that they want for Christmas, right?"

"Yeah…" Jake replied. "Is there a reason you wanted to know?"

Rose didn't answer. Instead, she simply smiled as she brought her glass to her lips. She had an idea; it looked like she was going to get her Christmas wish after all…

END CHAPTER

**A/N: So, what did you think? Please review.**

**I just realized something: I was originally going to have this be "Hairy Christmas", but then I realized that I had this take place after "Dreamscape". This was a mistake on my part. So, just imagine this as taking place after "Fool's Gold" and imagine that "Love Cruise", "Switcheroo" and "Homecoming" never happened. The Huntsclan is still looking for the skulls after about a year. Okay? **


	3. Chapter 3

Huntsgirl's Slay Ride

Chapter Three: Crappy Christmas Eve

The day before Christmas came all too soon for Rose. As her alarm clock rang that morning, the young huntress sighed as she sat up in her bed. She didn't know if she should be happy or depressed, as that previous night, Jake had told Rose that his family would be at the mall getting some last minute Christmas shopping done, as well as doing some family traditions. Rose wanted to be happy, but she was actually rather scared. She seriously doubted that the Huntsman would allow her to go have fun.

Getting up out of her bed, Rose walked over to her closet; pulling it open, she pressed a button that made her wall flip over, revealing her formal clothes. Grabbing her pink coat and winter pants, she put them on over her uniform before making her way over to her door.

Rose slowly crept down the dark halls before slowly making her way down the stairs. She had to be as silent as possible. Reaching the bottom of the stairs, Rose started to tip-toe across the room. Although she hated being in the Huntsclan, Rose knew that some of the things they taught her could be helpful in life. Rose was just about to make it to the exit of the subway station when she heard a deep, gruff and angry voice from behind her:

"Where do you think you're going, Huntsgirl?"

Rose's eyes widened and her heart skipped a beat. Trying to hide her fear, Rose turned around to face the Huntsman. "I…uh…" Rose stuttered.

"I'm waiting, Huntsgirl…"

"I…" Rose quickly made her mind up about her story. "I…I was going to go for a walk. I need some fresh air."

"Don't lie to me, Huntsgirl…" the Huntsman said dangerously as he approached her.

"I'm not lying!" Rose insisted. "Master, why do you still not trust me? Haven't I proven my worth to you?"

"Silence, Huntsgirl!" The Huntsman growled. "I don't want to hear anymore from you right now, and you are not to leave. You are to spend the day training. Since you have not yet slain the American Dragon, I think your skills need a little work…"

&*%

Rose growled as she stood in the training arena in front of a large punching bag. With one more growl, Rose threw a blow, landing a strong punch to the bag. And as she brought her hand back, Rose smiled slightly. Hitting that thing felt kind of good…

Rose spent the next hour beating the punching bag; her secret being that she was pretending that the bag was the Huntsman. "That's for every time you ever hit me!" Rose seethed as she delivered another punch. "This is for making me hunt magical creatures!" She added with rage as she delivered another punch.

"And this…" Rose growled as she felt her anger boiling inside of her chest. "…is for taking me from my family! HIYAH!" With a battle cry, Rose jumped up and spun, spin-kicking the punching bag, breaking off the chain it was hanging from and making the bag fall to the ground as Rose landed back on her feet, panting.

Looking down at the punching bag, Rose felt a tight feeling in her chest, it became difficult to breathe and she felt like her world was about to come crashing down around her. She couldn't take much more of this. She had to get out of the Huntsclan…before it was too late. But how? No one ever escaped the Huntsclan…

But then Rose remembered something: the dream date she had had with Jake; Jake had told her about Santa Claus. He existed…but could he help her? Rose had to find out.

&*%

Rose silently entered the Huntsclan's version of a library. Looking around the room, Rose was relieved to see that there were no hunters inside, except for one elder, who must be the librarian. And she probably didn't know that Rose wasn't supposed to be here.

Rose made her way over to a table where most of the hunts-computers were placed and she sat down at one of them, logging into it as she clicked on an avatar, leading her to a database of several magical creatures. Rose used the mouse to scroll down the types of creatures before clicking on "advanced search".

Taken to a whole new page, Rose clicked on the search lime and typed in "Santa Claus" before pressing the search button. Rose then watched as a bunch of information about Santa appeared on the screen. Taking hold of the mouse, Rose scrolled down the page and looked at all of the information on the page.

Finally, Rose finished reading through the whole page on Santa Claus, but to her displeasure, there was nothing on how she could contact him. "This doesn't help!" Rose buried her head in her hands. "Now what am I going to do? It's Christmas Eve, and he comes tonight! He'll never come here, and I can't take another year of this…"

Rose's eyes widened in surprise and she lifted her head up when she heard the door to the library open and close. Turning her head to the door, Rose's eyes widened in fear when she saw that the new arrival was the Huntsman; his eyes scanned the room before he saw her, and the next thing Rose knew, the Huntsman was walking over to her.

"Huntsgirl!" the Huntsman boomed. "What are you doing here?! I gave you orders to train today!"

Rose was shaking with fear as the Huntsman finally got to her, and his cold, uncaring eyes bore into her wide, frightened ones. "I asked you a question, Huntsg…" The Huntsman stopped mid-sentence when his eyes caught what was on the screen Rose was looking at. "Santa Claus?"

"Huntsmaster, I…" Rose tried to explain, but the Huntsman cut him off.

"Huntsgirl, I warned you about this on your very first day here…" the Huntsman growled.

"Master, wait! I can expla—uggh!" Rose was cut off before she could finish, due to the Huntsman's fist smashing into her face. Rose fell backwards and onto the floor, leaving only her legs still on the chair as the Huntsman stormed over to where Rose was on the ground.

The Huntsman growled in anger as he bent down and grabbed his apprentice, forcing her up onto her feet by her braid before he started forcing her out of the library.

"Master, please!" Rose begged as the Huntsman dragged her down the hall, pulling hard on her hair. Her entire face felt numb from the blow, and now she felt like most of her hair was going to be torn out. Rose squeezed her eyes shut in a futile attempt to prevent tears and her voice shook as she tried again: "Master, please! Stop, please! Please! You're hurting me!"

"Silence, girl!" The Huntsman ordered as he stopped at the door to her quarters. Grabbing hold of the knob, the Huntsclan leader pushed it open before throwing his apprentice inside. Rose stumbled into the room and fell to her knees just as the Huntsman slammed the door shut.

END CHAPTER

**A/N: Poor Rose! Okay, I promise that this is the last real depressing chapter. The next chapter will be a little depressing (possibly), but I think for the most part, it will be pretty lighthearted from here. **

**So, please tell me what you think and please review!**


	4. Chapter 4

Huntsgirl's Slay Ride

Chapter Four: Escape

It had been several hours since Rose had been confined to her quarters, and the young apprentice had only moved to lie down on her bed. Rose had not moved since, and simply lied there, silently crying. She didn't know what to do. Surely, her door was guarded, and there was no way she could do anything. She was trapped here.

Rolling over onto her back, Rose brought her hand up and slowly pulled off her mask from over her head. Rose could see that her mask was stained with tears. Tossing the mask to the ground, Rose rolled back over onto her side and closed her eyes as more tears started to run down her cheeks.

Before she knew it, Rose was feeling drowsy and on the verge of slipping into the Dream Realm. Rose was perfectly fine with this; in fact, she welcomed the thought of sleep. It would take her out of the pain of the moment. But just as she was about to slip into slumber, a distant, but rapidly approaching sound, made her snap her eyes open.

It sounded like…bells…

Grumbling, Rose slowly got up off of her bed and walked over to her window. Lifting up the glass, Rose put her head through and saw the outline of a line of four-legged creatures floating in the air carrying what appeared to be some kind of sleigh.

"Santa…" Rose muttered in awe as she watched the sleigh soar high in the sky. Suddenly, a small smile appeared across the huntress' face. This was her chance to leave the Huntsclan forever. But soon, the smile faded. How would she catch up with Santa and be able to talk to him? Suddenly, the answer hit Rose. Turning her head, Rose found her staff beside her bed.

Grabbing her staff, Rose rushed back over to her window and climbed outside and placed her staff on the ground, stepping back as it started to transform into a hover-board. As soon as the transformation was complete, Rose jumped onto the board as it flew off into the air.

&*%

Rose flew around searching for several minutes, but her spirits were slowly dying. She had lost sight of the sleigh and was now searching blindly over a residential area. Rose could feel her heart sink as she searched frantically all over the area.

There was no sign of Santa.

Rose could feel a tight feeling in her throat as she realized that she was out of luck. She didn't know what to do now. She had nowhere to go. She could not go back to the Huntsclan; she couldn't bare anymore physical pain dealt by the Huntsman. But she also couldn't go to Jake. That wouldn't be wise. The Huntsclan would look for her. She had only two options: go back or flee the city. The solution was obvious.

Closing her eyes, Rose was about to turn around and leave with an unknown destination, when she once again heard the bells of the sleigh. Turning her board around, Rose smiled with relief as she could see Santa's sleigh lifting off of the roof of a nearby house before moving on; landing at the very next house.

Rose stepped down on her board and sped over to the roof of the house. When she reached the roof, Rose jumped off onto the roof, the board reverting back to staff form as Rose reached over the edge and caught it, only to bring her knee up and snap the staff over it. Tossing the broken staff over the edge, Rose slowly made her way over to the sleigh and peeked into the back, where she could see several boxes of presents.

Rose was about to walk over to the front of the sleigh, but she whirled around in surprise as Santa's large bag magically came up the chimney and hovered into the air as some of the presents in the back of the sleigh started to glow and magically hovered into the air and into the bag.

Rose watched this with wonder, but her amazement soon turned into panic when she saw that the bag coming right for her. Before Rose could even react, the bag smacked into her, making her fall into the sleigh on top of the boxes of presents as the heavy bag landed on her chest, leaving her in a very uncomfortable position.

Well, this was going well…

Rose struggled against the bag pinning her down, but she stopped as she saw a figure suddenly shooting out of the chimney before landing on the roof. Rose silently gasped as she took in the man's appearance: all red clothing, white beard, and fat…Santa Claus…

Santa chuckled heartily. "I tell ya…" he said. "It's a good thing that these kids didn't ask for that much, or I'd be here all night…"

It really didn't surprise Rose that Santa could not see her, as the only thing that was not pinned down were her feet, head and hands. Rose watched as Santa walked out of her sight, and the next thing the huntress knew, the sleigh had taken off.

As the sleigh soared through the air, Rose brought her hands up and put them to the bag, trying to get it off of her. Grunting, Rose pushed at the bag, but it didn't budge. Sighing, Rose gave up.

This was going to be a long trip…

END CHAPTER

**A/N: So, was that any less depressing? I know it's short, but since I want to keep this at six chapters' length, I can pretty much promise you that the next chapter will be longer. Please review.**


	5. Chapter 5

Huntsgirl's Slay Ride

Chapter Five: All in One Night

Rose sighed in relief as Santa's sleigh finally landed on the roof of another house. There was a loud creak and the next thing Rose knew, there were footsteps on the roof coming right for her. The footsteps stopped, and Rose sighed with relief as the heavy weight was lifted off of her chest. Looking up, Rose could see the shocked face of Santa Claus.

Santa Claus merely had to catch sight of her blood-red clothing before he dropped the bag and backed up, putting his hands to his face. "I'm not that kind of magical, okay?" he pleaded. "I bring people joy!"

Rose jumped from the sleigh. "Santa, no, I'm not going to do anything! Please, just listen to me. My name is Rose and I was kidnapped at birth by the Huntsclan."

"Rose, huh?" Santa's panicked look faded, and he reached into his red jacket and pulled out a long piece of paper. "No, you're not on the list…" Santa looked at the paper before looking back at her. "Although, if I could, I'd put you on my hot list, okay…"

If Rose looked disgusted, it was because she was, but she forced that recent memory out of her mind. "Santa, if my name was on that last, it would probably have a permanent place on the naughty list, but I can't take anymore of the Huntsclan; I ran away. I have nowhere to go. Please, can you help me find my family? That's all I want for Christmas…"

Santa's eyes widened in surprise as he listened to the girl talking in front of him; never in his life as Santa had he heard such a Christmas wish. Most kids wanted bikes or expensive technology, but this girl only wanted was to find her family…

"Well, uh…" Santa stammered. "I would help you, but I have a very tight schedule tonight. I need to deliver all of these presents to all of the children of the world. So, I don't think I could help you…"

Rose seemed to freeze at that moment; inside, the huntress felt her world shattering. "Oh…" Rose managed to say despite her current feelings. "I—I—I totally understand. You have a job to do. It would be wrong of me to keep you from doing your job. I'll just go…" Turning around, Rose brought her land to her lip and close her eyes as her body became wracked with sobs.

"Wait!" Santa suddenly called. "You know, despite what some may say about me, I'm not a bad person. I'm willing to make you a deal. If you help me tonight, I'll try my best to reunite you with your family."

Hearing this, Rose immediately turned back around to face Santa without wiping away her tears. "Y…You can do that?" she asked. "But how? I don't know where they live."

"Rose…" Santa replied. "I'm Santa Claus! I can do just about anything. So, do we have a deal?"

Rose didn't even have to think about her answer. Nodding her head, Rose said quietly: "Yes."

&*%

Moments later, Rose sat by Santa's side in the front of the sleigh; Rose stared in surprise as Santa brought his hands up in the air, and in a flash of bright light, made a red Santa hat appear out of thin air. "Here, helper…" he told Rose as he handed it to her. "Put it on…"

Rose stared at the hat for a moment before she complied. Santa then took the reins and pulled on them, making the reindeer take off into the night, dragging the sleigh with it.

"So, Santa…" Rose turned to Santa. "How do you want me to help?"

"Well, we're going to speed things up a little bit, okay?" Santa replied. "While I go into one house, you're going to go into another. Can you do that?"

"Sure…" Rose replied. "That's all you want me to do?"

"That's all I have to do…" Santa chuckled. "There's nothing to worry about, okay. Last year, I got a lawsuit against me for those Burping Betty dolls. So, I had my elves stop making them…Oh, here we are…"

With another whip of Santa's reins, the reindeer lowered and landed on the roof, letting both Rose and Santa off. Santa and Rose both walked over to the back of the sleigh. Santa reached into the sleigh and pulled out a large bag full of presents, which he then handed to Rose. "Here you are." Santa replied. "I'll only be next door, so we'll meet up."

Rose nodded before she turned, slowly walking over to the chimney as she dragged the bag behind her. "Um Santa, how do I get down the chimney?"

"Well, since you're not magical, it will take a lot more getting used to…" Santa answered as he grabbed the bag away from Rose. Then he dangled the bag over the chimney. "Take the bag…" Santa instructed.

Rose looked nervous, but she nodded slightly and grabbed the bag with both hands, just as Santa let it go. Rose let out a shout as she was lifted off of her feet and disappeared down the chimney along with the bag. Santa stood there for a moment, listening to Rose scream as she fell; suddenly his eyes widened and he looked down the chimney. "If you could, could you bring me up the cookies?"

&*%

Rose's screams ended as the bag hit the floor of the fireplace, Rose landing on her stomach on the bag. "Oww…" Rose moaned as she slowly got to her feet and started to look around the room.

Finding the tree was quite easy: it was in the middle of the room that she had landed in. Rose then turned her head and saw that the stockings were over the mantle of the fireplace. Reaching into the bag, Rose found four candy canes and four chocolate bars. After putting one in each stocking, Rose grabbed onto the bag and grunted as she dragged it over to the tree. Rose reached into the bag, pulling out all of the wrapped presents and placing them under the tree.

Rose sighed as she finished; turning over to a nearby table, Rose walked over to it and found a bowl filled with three gingerbread cookies. Rose grabbed them and then walked back over to the chimney, the bag in her other hand. But when she reached the chimney, her eyes suddenly widened; how was she going to get back up?

&*%

Santa dropped the now full bag back into his sleigh before turning to the chimney. "I'll give the girl a couple more minutes…" Santa said to himself, but he soon gasped in surprise as he saw two arms appeared from inside the chimney, and a second later, Rose pulled herself out of the chimney, jumping down onto the roof as she panted.

"Did you get the cookies?" Santa asked.

"No!" Rose growled. "I had to drop them when I had to climb up the chimney with my bare hands!"

"Well you didn't have to do that…"

"Then what was I supposed to do?"

"You could have just waited." Santa answered her. "I would have pulled you out with my magic…"

&*%

Rose flew with Santa for several more hours; she had been getting much better at playing Santa, and she was actually starting to have a little bit of fun. But she knew that it was going to come to an end very soon…

Santa pulled at the reins, and the reindeer landed on top of another roof. "Well…" Santa turned to Rose. "This is your last house. Re you ready?"

Rose nodded as she climbed out of the sleigh and walked over to the back of the sleigh, grabbing the last bag and dragging it to the chimney. Rose quickly tossed the bag into the chimney before running towards the chimney and jumping down it.

&*%

The bag full of presents hit the ground with a small thud, as Rose appeared down the chimney, flipping over the bag and landing on her feet. Turning to grab the bag, Rose smiled slightly. "I'm getting better at this…"

Rose then turned and was about to look for the tree, but her eyes widened in fright as she came face to face with a growling dog. Her comment had woken the canine up, and it was now coming toward her, its sharp teeth visible.

"Crap…" Rose muttered, just before she was forced to dodge the growling dog's leap. Turning around, Rose put up her hands. "Easy boy…" she tried to soothe the dog. "I'm not trying to rob the place…"

"Mauler?" a new, small, male voice rang out. Turning her head, Rose could see that a little boy was walking down the stairs. Rose frantically searched around the room for a place to hide, and to her relief, she saw the Christmas tree in the corner if the room. Rose rushed over to it and managed to hide behind the tree, just as the boy entered the room.

"What is it, Mauler?" the little boy asked. "Do you…?" before he could finish, he heard the jingling of one of the ornaments on the tree and turned his attention. "Who's there?" he asked in a frightened voice.

Rose just stood there for a moment, before she finally made up her mind on what to do. Shooting out her arms, she imitated an adult male to the best of her ability: "Ho, ho, ho! Merry Christmas, little boy!" she declared.

'Santa, what are you doing with the tree?" the boy asked. "Are you going to tell me that you are taking it to your workshop to fix it only to actually be stealing it, just like The Grinch?"

"What?" Rose asked, reverting back to her normal voice. "Who's The Grinch?" But then she realized the mistake she had made when she saw the shocked and confused look on the boy's face. Mentally kicking herself, Rose returned to her Santa voice. "I mean no! It's just…the dog is…making it difficult."

"Oh!" the boy said in a relieved voice before he went over to the dog and grabbed its collar, gently pulling it away. "Come on, Mauler. You need to let Santa do his work…"

Rose watched as the boy left the room with the dog before she stepped away from the tree and reached into the bag, pulling out and placing all of the presents underneath the tree. Then, when she was done, she looked around the room for any sign of cookies, but she could not find any. Rose then turned and walked back to the chimney and looked up.

"Santa, are you there?" she asked, and before she knew it, Santa was looking down on her.

"Just a second; I'll get you right out…" Santa called down. Rose nodded and before she knew it, she felt herself being lifted up and out of the house by Santa's magic.

END CHAPTER

**A/N: So, what did you think? I admit that I couldn't resist putting that "The Grinch" reference in there. I just couldn't. Also, the sixth and final chapter will be posted later today. So, please review.**

**Oh, and I also don't own American Dragon or The Grinch. **


	6. Chapter 6

Huntsgirl's Slay Ride

**Disclaimer: I don't own American Dragon.**

Chapter Six: Christmas Wish

The sun has begun to rise by the time Rose saw the outside world again after being inside the chimney. Setting her feet back down on the chimney, Rose started to walk over to the sleigh, only to find that all of the presents were gone.

"You did a great job, Rose…" Santa commented from behind. Rose turned to face him and found that Santa was smiling at her. "Which means that there is only one thing left to do…"

A smile slowly made its way onto Rose's face, and the huntress nearly felt like jumping up and down and grabbing Santa in as large of a hug as she could. Fortunately, Rose was able to control her feelings. But then Rose realized the only problem with what Santa was saying, and it made her smile fade. "But…how will we find them?"

To Rose's surprise, Santa laughed as he walked over to his sleigh. Reaching into the sleigh, Santa pulled out a small bag. "Magic, Rose! We'll use magic! Christmas miracles can always happen…"

"But they don't always happen…" Rose was failing at hiding how nervous she was.

"Well…sometimes I get lazy…" Santa replied slowly as he walked over to her. Holding the bag close to Rose, he ordered: "Put your hands on the bag and think about what you desire most, okay? Picture what they look like perfectly in your mind…"

Rose nodded, and she slowly put her hands to the bag. Closing her eyes, Rose began to picture what her parents looked like in her dream: her mother's short blonde hair, her father's brown hair and both of their loving and happy smiles. Opening her eyes, Rose was surprised to see that the bag was now glowing. Smiling, Santa pulled the bag away from Rose and tossed it up into the sky, where the bag exploded in a bright light, leaving nothing but a golden trail in the air. A map of sorts…

"Let's go…" Santa told her.

&*%

Rose stared in wonder as the sleigh finally landed in front of a row of houses; the golden "map" had curved and now pointed to the front door of a large, green colored building.

"Well, it's time for you to get off…" Santa said. "I have one last thing that I need to do." Rose nodded and slowly got off, only to turn back to Santa when he called her: "Rose…Merry Christmas!"

Santa then laughed as he took the reins of the sleigh; Rose watched as Santa took off into the air and disappeared. Once up in the air, Santa released the reins and put his hands up; in a bright flash, a small card appeared in thin air. Then, reaching down, Santa grabbed another small bag. Holding the bag tightly, Santa closed his eyes as the bag exploded into a blue light. Opening his eyes, Santa stared at the blue light as it formed into a small screen. Inside the screen, Santa could see a nervous Rose slowly walking up the stairs to her family's house.

&*%

Rose's heart was pounding as she made her way to the top step of her parents' house. Closing her eyes and taking a deep breath, Rose brought her hand up and knocked on the door. Rose then stepped back and waited…

Finally, after what felt like forever, the door finally opened. Looking at the person who had opened the door, Rose knew that this had to be her twin. She had blue eyes and long, curly blonde hair that went down to her back. The girl wore a red Christmas sweater and what looked like the pants of a pair of pajamas. The girl must have noticed the resemblance between them, for her eyes widened and she opened her mouth.

"Mom…" the girl said uneasily.

"What is it, Ashley?' a new female voice asked, and the next thing Rose knew, her mother had entered the room. Her mother walked in and stopped right beside Ashley, her eyes widening as she looked at the girl at her doorstep. "No…It can't be…" she muttered.

Rose just stood there for a moment, equally as shocked as her mother was. She had found them. Finally regaining her consciousness of the world and people around her, Rose brought up her right hand and waved, showing her mother her birthmark.

As Rose had expected, her mother's eyes widened even more. "C--Come in…" her mother ordered softly, Rose obeying as her mother walked passed her and closed the door and then returned to her lost daughter's side, just as a man came into sight: Rose's father.

"What is going on?" he asked.

"Honey…" Rose's mother exclaimed as she grabbed Rose's hand. "Come here and take a look!"

Rose didn't really care for someone grabbing her hand like that, but at the moment, she was just stuck in the moment of having found her family.

Rose watched as her father stared down at her hand. When her father brought his head back up, Rose was not surprised to see that he had a shocked look on his face. "Honey…" Rose's mother said. "This can only mean one thing: our prayers have been answered. Our daughter is alive…and has finally come home…"

"What?" Rose turned her head to see her sister, Ashley, with a shocked look on her face. "What are you talking about? I'm your daughter!"

"Of course you are…" Rose's mother walked back over to Ashley. "And so is she…" she pointed back to Rose. "Ashley, your father and I never told you, but you have a twin. Rose…"

"But…" Ashley was at a loss for words. "Why wasn't she here then? Did you put her up for adoption? What?"

"No, Ashley…" her mother answered. "Rose was taken from us right after you two were born. We didn't know what to do. We tried to search for you, but we had no leads. A man wearing a mask just walked in there and took you, Rose."

"I know…" Rose whispered.

"How did you know?" her father asked her.

"I saw it happen in a dream…" Rose answered, hoping she didn't sound insane. "I couldn't explain it, but I could just feel it. I knew that it wasn't just a dream."

"Rose…" tears started to form in the eyes of her mother. "…we thought you were dead. But now that we know you're alive—why were you taken from us?"

Rose was about to open her mouth, but before she could, her father spoke: "Please honey, can we discuss this tomorrow? She's home now. That should be all that matters today…"

"But…" Rose made out. "What if they come looking for me?"

Rose's father turned back to face her, and her mother and twin joined his side. "We will never let them take you again, Rose."

&*%

"HUNTSGIRL!" The Huntsman stood in front of his apprentice's door. "HUNTSGIRL! Get up out of bed! I have an assignment for you! HUNTSGIRL!" There was no answer. "HUNTSGIRL! DON'T MAKE ME BREAK THIS DOOR DOWN!"

There was still no answer.

With a roar of rage, the Huntsman backed up and charged, smashing into the door and making it shatter into many pieces. The Huntsman somersaulted into the room before he landed on his feet, staring at the empty room; the first thing catching his eye was the open window.

The Huntsman made his was passed the bed, a piece of blood-red silk on the floor catching his eye. The Huntsman bent down and picked it up, only to see that it was Huntsgirl's mask.

Staring at it, the Huntsman knew what gad happened; he wasn't an idiot. Huntsgirl had run away. But since he wasn't an idiot, the Huntsman knew there was little he could do. She could be anywhere in the city, or maybe have even fled the city. He also knew that there was no way that she could have known that her parents still lived, as she had only been a baby. The Huntsman knew that there was no way he would be able to find her.

With a roar of rage, the Huntsman stood up and grabbed the mask with both hands, tearing it in two.

&*%

Jake yawned as he followed his parents and younger sister down the stairs and into their living room, where presents were resting underneath the tree. As his family started unwrapping gifts, Jake just stood there. He wasn't concerned with presents, he was worried about Rose. She hadn't shown up the day before at the mall. Jake hoped that Rose was okay.

"Jake!" Jake looked down at his sister as she handed him an envelope. "This looks like it is the only thing for you!"

"Whatever, Haley…" Jake growled as he snatched the envelope from his sister. Looking at the envelope, Jake could see that it read:

_To Jake_

_From Santa_

_PS. don't open this in front of your family_

Jake sighed as he turned and made his way to the kitchen. After checking to see if anyone had followed him inside, Jake slowly opened the envelope and pulled out a small card, and as he opened it, a glowing blue orb fell into his hand. Jake ignored the orb for a moment as he read the letter.

_Dear Jake,_

_I thought that instead of getting a new skateboard this year, or perhaps a few new CDs, I thought that you would be happy to know that the girl you love has gotten her Christmas wish this year. _

_Signed,_

_Santa Claus_

_PS: The next time you see Rose, tell her that she was a huge help, okay?_

Jake lowered the letter with a shocked look on his face. Had Santa found Rose's family? Jake then remembered the orb in his hand; just as Jake brought his attention back to it, it rose into the air, and Jake could see that there was some kind of portal, or screen of some sorts, being shown. On the screen, Jake could see Rose sitting in the middle of a family room, a man, woman and another girl all sitting around her. Jake smiled. Yep, Santa had found her family.

&*%

Back at Rose's family's house, Rose smiled as she sat next to her mother, father and sister as she saw her very first Christmas tree inside a house. "Mom, Dad…" Rose asked as her eyes scanned the top of the tree. "The only trees I've seen have been in malls, so I may be wrong, but shouldn't there be a star on top?"

Rose then noticed that her parents were now looking at each other. Then, Rose's father stood up and walked over to the fireplace mantle. He grabbed a small box and turned, walking back over to Rose. When he got back over to Rose, he held the box in front of her. "Go on, Rose." He said. "Open it."

Rose just stared at the box before she finally summoned the courage to open the box. Staring inside the box, Rose's eyes widened as she saw a beautiful golden star. "It has been fourteen years since we put a star on top of our tree, Rose." Her father told her. "For us, the holidays were never a happy time. We always kept this off of the tree…to remind us of who we had lost."

Rose just stared at the tree topper, but she turned to face her sister when Ashley opened her mouth. "You always told me that you had a phobia of ladders."

"Well…" Rose's father continued. "You're back. Take it, Rose."

Rose slowly reached into the box and gently pulled out the delicate tree topper before slowly standing up. "Do you need help reaching the tree?" her father asked her. Speechless, Rose simply nodded. Rose's father then picked his daughter up by her sides and lifted her up so she could reach the top.

The star slid over the very top branch, and Rose felt herself lowering to the ground as her father set her back down. The, Rose sat back down and joined her family. And as she stared up at the tree, Rose smiled. She had finally gotten what she had wanted for so long: an actual Christmas celebration with her family. Rose had found her family, and now she was certain that there would never again be another holiday season where she felt alone.

END

**A/N: So concludes my Christmas story. What did you think? Please review.**


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